There been much chatter in the news in the past several months of Company XYZ laying off 30% of its workforce, or yet, Company ABC just filing for bankruptcy protection.  Employees within many companies that may be in these situations are running scared.  They are worried that their jobs (or careers for that matter) might be in jeopardy.  With tension in the workplace being high, it has a direct effect on overall performance - negatively.

Implementing a thoughtfully planned out employee recognition program into your company will help ease employee worries and let them know that ‘it’s ok’, and that ‘yes, you do matter and are appreciated.’

Recognize Performance - when employee morale is low, overall performance and profitability suffers, which compounds on an already dark forecast.  I hate to say it, but an employee who is worried whether their contributions will matter in the first place is less likely to work to the best of their abilities.  Just by the manager stopping by and offering a congratulatory pat-on-the-back or a tangible gift will let the employee know that they do matter and will feel motivated to work harder.

Strengthens Employee-to-Employer Relationships - when an employee completes a task, and a manager recognizes them for that accomplishment also creates a stronger bond between the boss-to-employee relationships.  Yes, the task that the employee just completed was most likely ‘part of their job in the first place’, but it sends a signal to the recipient that their boss really values the work that they do.

Before you go and slash budgets for this next year in employee recognition, think of what damage that might do for your company’s bottom line on a long term.  If your company is struggling, I’d argue, it’s quite the opposite approach you should be taking to employee recognition, increasing budgets and opening the lines of extending a thoughtful hand of appreciation.

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Sure, it’s been widely understood (and embraced by a growing percentage of corporate America for that matter) that when you extend the hand of employee recognition in the form of a tangible gift or a reward, that it will yield positive returns in a happier workforce.  What cannot, however, be overlooked, is the other side of employee recognition, which is knowing those who work around, or for you.

Now, for smaller companies, say less than 100 employees, it’s really that difficult to get to know those whom you work with on a daily basis along with how their role or position fits into the overall corporate picture.  Larger companies, however, may find this to be a never-ending struggle.

One such large company that is paving the way for innovative thinking with regards to employee visibility is online apparel and footwear shopping giant Zappos.com.  With approximately 1,800 employees, CNNMoney ranked Zappos this past year as 6th (up from 15th in 2010) in the ‘Top 100 Best Companies To Work For’ listing.  Why?  Perhaps one of their secrets is their continuing commitment to have everyone get to know each other.  For example, when an employee goes to access their internal database systems, as part of the login procedure, they are required to view a photo of another employee (selected at random) and identify who the person is before  getting access to the company’s mainframe.

For those of you who may work for a company with 1,500+ employees, I have a challenge for you right now.  Think of those employees in your company who you really are familiar with; how many names do you really know?  I’ll bet you the number that you come back with is lower than you think.  And if it is one the high side, then cheers to you!

The point I’m want to make is that visibility needs to be part of a company’s employee recognition plan.  The more people know about each other on a personal level, the easier it becomes to have a better understanding of each other and appreciation for what each employee brings to the table.

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The past two or three years has certainly been a test for the American economy of how to work more with less - trimming in every area possible to keep the company afloat and heading toward a successful future.  Employees are working even faster, longer, and harder to produce infinitely greater results with less resources than ever before.  There is something to be said about those employees who sacrifice so much of their own personal lives for the betterment of the business - it’s loyalty.  Loyalty, however, can have a short shelf life if not attended to properly with appropriate employee recognition and rewards program.

I’m not saying you as the employer have to go out and buy 7-day cruises for all your employees just for doing the things their supposed to do in the first place.  What I am saying, however, is recognize those employees who have decided to sacrifice their personal lives, their comfort zones, and for some their family lives for your organization appropriately.

Bringing an employee recognition program into the corporate culture will show your employees that you value their loyalty, recognize their sacrifices, and want to reward them for their efforts.

Once you have implemented an employee recognition program, you’ll start to see a dramatic shift in employee confidence in their work and how their performance directly affects the future success of the business overall.

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For those loyal readers to this blog, by now you should’ve caught on to the notion that there might be something to all the noise being raised in Human Resource departments around the country when it comes to employee recognition.  You simply CANNOT ignore the fact that it is indeed employee recognition that will keep your company successful and remain competitive within the new market landscape.  It’s critical issue #1 to have an employee recognition program in place that shows appreciation for hard work ethic, rewards for continued excellence, over-achievement, and continued teamwork.

Instills Confidence - I challenge you to go out of your office right now and into the hallway, find a random co-worker (just pick the closest one), and pay them a heart-felt compliment.  Don’t be general with your comments, rather choose something more specific, like, “You really did a great job yesterday in presenting the end-of-the-year numbers to the rest of the team.  Those numbers provided much insight into how we should focus our strategies for this upcoming calendar year.”  Now once you give the compliment, observe what your co-worker does.  Did they smile?  Blush?  Say ‘Thank You’?  Of course they did.  Everyone wants to feel that they are appreciated.  Now comes the confidence part - watch them walk away.  I bet they have a bouncier spring in their step.  It’s because just by recognizing someone, even if only by verbal comment, builds confidence.

Productivity - now let’s take that same experiment from above and fast forward about a week from now, or a month from now.  How is the performance of that employee now?  Better?  Faster?  My bet is that they are working more productive than ever before.  Why?  It’s because the last time they produced good work, they received recognition for it, and felt good about what they were doing.  Since the employee tasted recognition once, they want to work hard to receive more recognition.  The more recognition the employee receives will lead to greater productivity because they WANT to do the work, rather than HAVING to do the work.

Loyalty - the happier your employees are, the less they want to leave you.  This is really the most simple lesson of all in employee recognition.  Letting your employees know that they are appreciated and they are a valuable asset to the overall company’s success and growth will decrease attrition ten-fold.  Who really wants to work for a company that under-appreciates, devalues, or mistreats their employees?  If that is happening, how long do you think that employee would stay?  Not long, I bet.

It’s that simple really - instilling good employee recognition practices into your company’s culture can yield lasting effects to the overall success.

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Recently, a small tech company based in Dallas implemented an employee recognition program to spark team-building and act as a morale booster.  Simple in design, the ‘Awesome’ program’s concept is to allow each employee to vote for another employee who they think is ‘awesome’.  The reason can be for anything - performance, assistance on a task, going above and beyond, stellar customer service, whatever.  The employee recognition program tallies the awesome votes and displays the results online.  At the end of the week, the employee with the most amount of awesome votes gets to choose how they would like to be rewarded.

What can be taken away from this example, is that an employee recognition program, no matter how simplistic or complex it may be, speaks volumes in increasing overall employee satisfaction about the company they work for and builds morale.  Far too often, companies feel they need to have a ‘Ferrari’ type solution when it comes to employee recognition because it’s shiny and has a lot of toys - expensive toys.  Remember, the more complex the employee recognition program is, the more expensive it will cost to bring to life.  Which usually means, less you have to spend on rewarding your employees.

The best advise is to consult with experts who know what they’re doing in the world of incentives and employee recognition.  Once you’ve explained to them what objectives you are looking to accomplish, they will have a better understanding (and experience) as to what the proper solution would be best fit for your organization.

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By now, most companies understand there needs to be more done in increasing employee engagement and boosting workforce morale, but there still seems to be a big roadblock in convincing executives that its worth its weight in gold to invest in employee recognition.

Arming your Human Resources with the proper research and case studies will help build a credible case to the CFO’s and CEO’s on accurately measuring “The Return on Engagement”.

Here are a few studies providing examples of the newest techniques in employee engagement.

According to Sirota Survey Intelligence study of “The Enthusiastic Employee 2009“, employees directly reporting to managers who are disengaged themselves, are 12% less likely to stay, 33% more likely to “be frustrated with the company’s systems and processes”, and 13% less likely to be innovative.

In 2008, the HR consulting firm, Watson Wyatt, published a report entitled “Continuous Engagement: The Key to Unlocking the Value of Your People During Tough Times“. The report concluded that “leaders that link their Employee Value Proposition (EVP) to the actions and programs that increase employee engagement can expect to be rewarded.”

BlessingWhite, a global leader in employee engagement consulting reported in 2008, that of the employees who are currently engaged with their the company they work for, 85% indicate that “they plan to stay with their employer for at least the next 10 months”.

There are plenty of other facts, figures, and studies out there that will help build a better business case when it comes to the benefits of employee engagement. The greatest lesson to convey to upper management is that there is a direct correlation between employee engagement, retention, and performance.

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Let’s take a look at some statistics regarding employee engagement and its impact in the workplace:

-  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, last year (2010), combining the months of February, June, and October, the number of employees who voluntarily quit their job far exceeded the number fired or let go.
-  Gallup recently reported that the US economy spent approximately $370 Billion in lost productivity due to actively disengaged employees
-  Of those employees who are engaged, 67% become valuable advocates to their company as an organization (Gallup)
-  According to ACCOR, 75% of leaders have no formal strategy when it comes to employee engagement (it’s stunning to note that 90% of those same leaders recognize the importance of employee engagement to the success of their business).

The truth is in the numbers.  Having a formal employee engagement strategy, or employee recognition and rewards program is critical in today’s corporate culture.  Rewarding your employees can be as simple as a ‘pat on the back’, a ‘high five’, or a ‘kudos to you’, or more with employees working towards achieving performance goals for a nice reward at the end.  Either way (or both), implementing a rewards program into your corporate culture will empower your employees to work smarter, produce more, and with greater quality.  Why?  By creating an exciting and rewarding environment for your employees, they WANT to work for you because they feel appreciated, and at the end of the day, their contributions to the organization not only matter, but are noticed.

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Before implementing any type of employee rewards program into your company’s culture, you need to first consider a few important factors.

Just as investing in asset management, technology upgrades, corporate security, product development, and marketing are all important areas of running a successful business, so too is the investment in creating and fostering the right corporate culture which motivates your employees.  Without a solid corporate culture, which engages your employees, may critically cripple your goals as a company.

Among the most valuable benefits to implementing employee recognition programs into your corporate culture include:
-  Drive employee engagement
-  Decrease attrition
-  Strengthen manager-to-employee relationships
-  Improved peer morale
-  Empower employees to choose their own reward
-  Reinforces existing corporate culture and company values
-  Encourages goal setting and rewards achievements

Establishing an employee recognition program cannot only improve employee engagement and retention, but foster innovation, which will lend itself to improving the bottom line.

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In today’s world, the companies who are staying ahead of the curve are moving a greater amount of resources and budget to bolstering the engagement of their employees through innovative rewards program solutions.    Properly designed employee rewards programs wrapped around existing business objectives can serve as a useful tool in inspiring your employees.

Recognize Your Employees - showing appreciation for employees who excel in their performance or stand out in the crowd can yield dramatic returns.  When the appropriate recognition is extended, such as direct from a manager, the employees feel the value they bring to the table, while inspiring those around the employee to perform at their best as well.

Offer The Right Reward - who are we to determine what is best to give someone who performs at their best as a reward.  Make sure you give them the option to choose for themselves.  Perhaps give them something to work for.  For example, perhaps a particular employee would like to get a certain handbag they have been eying in the department store for quite some time.  Each time they achieve their goals in the office, reward them points.  The employee is more likely to repeat the positive behavior to accumulate more points to eventually redeem for that handbag.

The key to retaining your valuable employees is in showing proper appreciation.  When employees feel valued, they are more likely to outperform even themselves.

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How much does it cost to say ‘thank you’?  Not much.

How much is the return after saying ‘thank you’?  Infinite.

Top companies from around the world are discovering the dramatic returns on the integration of a ‘thank you’ or ‘kudos’ culture into their workforce.  Recently, global giant Hewlett Packard initiated a pilot program within their workforce.  For HP employees who volunteer within their community each month receive recognition in gift cards as a way of saying, ‘thank you’.

The program has received such notoriety that the Harvard Business School studied the program and noted, “when organizations give employees the opportunity to spend money on others – whether their co-workers or those in need – both the employees and the company benefit, with increased happiness and job satisfaction, and even improved team performance.”

When developing an employee recognition program into your own company culture, it’s important to keep a couple of points in mind:
1.  Pay close attention - to the ebb-and-flow of your corporate culture and what the motivational drivers are with your employees
2.  Don’t underestimate the power of simple ‘kudos’.  They don’t cost much, and go a long way towards appreciation.

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